My name is Taiga Serynzheri, Death Knight, artist, and former Farstrider. My father, Arrian Serynzheri, was the hereditary leader of House Serynzheri. The leadership has since passed on, but I carry the pride of it still. However, that is not the intent of this letter.
In three days, my companion, Eris Kaminuil and I will return to Silvermoon. The time spent in Duskwood and Northrend was relatively fruitless; only entertainment before the true game begins. Should it all play out correctly, she and I will gain power far beyond our original reckoning. And the next phase of my plan will begin.
Our meeting with my cousin, Artairis Serynzheri, is in four days. Four days before the game begins. Brace yourselves, readers. I do not promise a fairy-tale story of an innocent girl coming into her inheritance. And should you decide that what I have written is too much to withstand, the fault lies with you alone. I promise no sweetening of my tale to suit you.
What I promise is entertainment.
Duskwood had been a place of evil and corruption for years. A place where the very ground had been tainted, and the inhabitants were outnumbered by the undead and Worgen in the forests. But the night of November twenty-seventh was something new. A years-long tale of lies and deceit was unraveled in a single night.
The Death Knights under Taiga Serynzheri were betrayed. She had offered them kindness, and stayed with them when the rest of the world seemed to have forgotten their sacrifice. Those who were protected by Taiga lived together as a group of outcasts - a family truer than the ones they had all lost. She spent their lives in a single night. So many friends.. had died for that pointless cause.
And the only one who lived to comprehend the betrayal was killed in cold blood by Taiga herself.
After that night of massacre, only three remained.
It didn't matter what time it was in the Catacombs. There was never enough light to blot out all of the shadows. As the Death Knight descended through the tunnels, it became darker. The faint stream of cold air never ceased, flowing up from the depths beyond his perception. All rooms he walked through seemed empty. The library had a few early-morning readers, the laboratories were empty except for the experiments in progress, and nobody walked the corridors besides him.
He made his way down slowly to the lower levels. As he paused to unlatch the gates to the subterranean pool, he could hear faint whispers and water trickling. Somewhere far beneath, where he couldn't even see.
"Not very long in coming, are you, Van Gestel?" A faintly metallic voice called over from somewhere in the shadows. The sound of something slithering over stone made him turn. Ripples moved over the pool, catching the distant blue light in the braziers on all sides. Something walked out of the darkness, and stood at the opposite side of the pool. A tall elf girl, bone-white in the darkness, with two blue glowing runeblades strapped crosswise across her back. Taiga. She inclined her head towards the other Death Knight in a polite gesture.
The other Death Knight didn't move. He remained at the opposite side of the room, his ghouls staying just behind him. To judge from their barely-rotted flesh, they had been killed and risen very recently.
"I'm here to balance the scales, Serynzheri. You should die a thousand times over for the misery you caused." The man's stopped to put a hand to his half-exposed jaw. His face had been gnawed away at until many of the bones in his face shone white. Something white and fat wriggled around in the flesh. Without comment, Taiga put a handkerchief over her nose.
"I see. And naturally, you think you're the one suited for the job. Please help yourself, Van Gestel. I'm not going anywhere." She sat down on the 'throne' behind her; in reality, only several chunks of stone from sarcophagi, piled like bricks into the shape of a backless seat.
Behind Taiga, something moved in the shadows. As it stepped into the faint blue light, its outline resolved into that of another person. Although her old guard, Kaan'fon, had been killed in the massacre, it seemed allies remained with her still. The Orc gave them both a stiff bow and focused on Van Gestel. It might have been some trick of the light, but her teeth seemed longer and sharper than those of her race. Fangs - not just teeth.
"Thanks, Thaugrima." Taiga said calmly. She looked over to Van Gestel, wearing her perpetual faint smile. "Go ahead if you think you're suited to the task. We'll see."
It happened in such a short time. Thaugrima unsheathed her runeblades and charged at Van Gestel, fangs bared in a snarl. Van Gestel dodged to the side, catching one of her runeblades on the flat of his own. Thaugrima forced it down towards Van Gestel until the metal strained.
Something on the blade crept into her armor. A moment passed. They remained locked like that, neither of them giving way. Until black streaks appeared under the skin of Thaugrima's face, and slowly worked towards her eyes. Her concentration broke and she stumbled backwards when Van Gestel kicked her in the gut. She lay on the floor twitching as the ropy black growths chewed through her flesh. She looked up to them once - before one of her eyes burst, spattering black-flecked gore over the stone. Her skin shifted as the maggots underneath it began to eat.
Van Gestel looked back up to Taiga.
"You may have noticed that you couldn't find Deidre's body amongst the others," Taiga said, speaking at her usual leisurely pace. Barely aware of the threat. "I.. took the liberty of having it moved. There are several Shadow Priests in the Catacombs, all with the ability to resurrect her. There's just one little snag in your plan here. I'm the only one who knows where her body is. Should you kill me, you'll never be able to see her again.."
She grinned, resting her head on a hand.
Silence. If Van Gestel had looked hateful before, it was nothing compared to that moment. Taiga edged back in her seat, bracing herself.
"Don't think you can lie your way out of responsibility this time, elf. I'll give you two weeks before coming after you. If you haven't made preparations for resurrecting Deidre in that time, then our deal's off." He waited until Taiga spoke her agreement before walking out.
Once she was alone on her seat, she began to smile again. She eyed the corpse at her feet. The maggots were beginning to inch across the floor, leaving bloodstains in their trails.
[Why yes, I'm trying to convey the idea that the elves are ridiculously sparkly, etc. sometimes. Especially the Serynzheris. How'd you guess?]
Spoiler:
It was colder than one might have expected, that morning in Silvermoon. The shady spots where the sun didn't reach had the faintest specklings of frost, and the people walking through on early-morning business didn't tend to linger. Perhaps the spells keeping the eternal autumn were weak that day. Or perhaps it was something else. Whatever the reason, the courier didn't idle in the streets after receiving her message. She wrapped her red-and-gold cape around her shoulders and climbed onto her Hawkstrider. The new letter, she kept in cold hands rather than putting it in the courier's bag at her waist.
"Thirty-eight, Sunswalk." She shook her head. "Well, at least I might get invited in. Come on, Ilki." She made a clicking sound with her tongue, and the Hawkstrider started trotting along down the Walk of Elders. He kept his head up and alert, glancing from thing to thing with liquid black eyes. Once the sun broke completely over the Walk, he sang a few notes. The courier smiled fondly and rubbed him under one wing.
Sunswalk was almost half the city away from the Walk of Elders. By the time Ilki and the courier ventured down that road, the bag was nearing empty - all the letters had been distributed, except for the ones which had addresses in Eversong. The two companions gawked openly at the houses. The nearest one had once been a white marble estate with many walkways branching out over it, and a small private greenhouse at the pinnacle. But with the advent of the Sin'dorei, the owners had added red and gold paneling, carvings, and massive stained-glass windows just a bit too tall for passerby to see inside. One graceful spire led up to the statue of two Sin'dorei girls dancing.
"...That must have cost a fortune. How're those people able to afford it?" The courier looked down to her side, where the single letter rested in on Ilki's iridescent purple plumage. She picked it up and checked the address again. "Not them? I could've sworn that the Brightglade estate was thirty-eight. Maybe they reshuffled housing." She let out a faint snort, and kept looking from house to house as Ilki strutted down the Walk.
Thirty-eight Sunswalk was, if anything, a modicum smaller than the other estates in the area. But that was the only way one could find fault with it: the lower level was white marble with a polished sheen, but as soon as it passed the second floor, the entire building branched out into magnificent spiraling walkways: the sun and cloudless blue sky beyond shining through it all. The translucency of the marble made it seem almost like glass. A couple of young manawyrms followed one another through the walkways - circling around and over them in an endless game of chase. The courier tilted her head back to look up at it all.
"Does it look like.. branches to you too?" She took her guider trinket - a solidly cast brass songbird - out of her pocket and clicked it, then nodded. "This is it. Wait here a moment." She unlooped her feet from the stirrups and slid down Ilki's back, walking for the golden doors with the letter in hand. She stood in front of them for a moment or two, trying to keep herself from staring at her surroundings. It was only some time later that she noticed the small glassy-looking chime inset in the door. She flicked it once, very gently, and settled back on the balls of her feet to wait.
The crack between the doors glowed, and swung open, flooding the threshold with silvery light. The servant came out blinking in the relative darkness. She was shorter than the courier by a few inches, with a bright, inquisitive face and curly blonde hair tied up in a bun. But what the courier had eyes for was the insignia on her robe: an interlocking pattern of Thalassian, embroidered in gold thread. The girl looked over at her, raising an eyebrow.
"Serynzheri Silvermoon residence. May I help you?"
"I'm here to deliver a letter to Artairis Serynzheri. Is he home?" The courier stayed where she was, holding the letter out for the servant to inspect. With the moment or two she gained, she was able to see further into the room. Draperies and paintings covered the walls in profusion; all red-gold and in the typical Thalassian styles. The antechamber had golden paneling on the lower half. As the servant beckoned her in, she took the opportunity to look up to the arching ceiling. It had been painted a bright celestial blue. Clouds drifted through it; probably the work of some magically adept artist.
"It'll be a moment. Follow me please.." The servant turned and led the courier through the antechamber and several other rooms, growing progressively larger in size. Each grew grander in decorations - from paintings of fantastic landscapes and creatures, to the sculptures and magical curios which littered every table. By the time they reached the last circular room, the courier was trying not to look. The servant escorted her to the center, all the while keeping a careful watch on her.
A full half of the room was ringed with windows; cut precisely to sparkle as the sun hit them. A few curtains and cushions were scattered around in the background. But that wasn't where she was looking. The white-draped table in the center of the room had three people around it, comfortable in their chairs and eating as they talked. One of them looked their way and motioned to the others.
"What is it?" The speaker was the one on the left side. He put his plate aside and looked up intently at them as they approached. He was barely older than the two himself, but almost a foot taller; fair-skinned, with a lean, majestic-looking face, and pale golden hair braided back fastidiously. His eyes were such a bright blue that even their glow had a bluish tinge. One of his sleeves had the same insignia as the servant wore: several Thalassian glyphs interlocking in gold.
"I.. uhm.. I have a message. For the Serynzheri family - well, it's addressed to Artairis Serynzheri."
"It'd better not be another curse," one of the people farthest away said in an amused voice. The courier looked over. This one was considerably older than them both. She had darker gold hair spilling past her shoulders, a sharp-chinned face, and a wicked grin which appeared as soon as they looked her way. The same golden symbol was embroidered into the skirt of her wine-red robe. "I'm getting rather tired of them, you know."
"Couriers have a system for that, my lady. We're required to run each piece of mail through a detector, or have a mage examine it before it's delivered," the courier explained, looking warily from one Serynzheri to the next. The last one was younger than the other two, and was still absorbed in his breakfast.
"It's addressed to me, Cyielra." The first elf told the other calmly. He turned to the courier, hand extended. "Please, miss. May I have it?" She handed it over without hesitation. He examined the envelope - standard, white-and-gold paper - down to the blue seal before opening it. Cyielra moved her chair to read the letter over his shoulder. The courier bit her lip and glanced around for the servant. She was gone.
"Who gave you this?" Artairis asked several minutes later. He examined the letter one last time, and opened the envelope to put it back. Something brushed around inside. Cyielra reached into the envelope over his shoulder, her eyes narrowing.
It was a single pine twig, which gleamed in the light like a star. Bark, needles, and wood were all crystalline. Cyielra rolled it in her hand, still staring at it as it let out a few chimes.
"I.. she was wearing a mask. I couldn't tell. But she had very long silver hair, and wore some pretty expensive-looking robes. She'd stand out, I think. Do you want me to get a name for you?"
"It's all right," Artairis replied. He sat back down on his chair with a faintly puzzled expression, looking over to Cyielra. She returned his look with an equally puzzled one of her own. "You may leave now. Rhualie, please show the courier out, and give her her tip." The servant reappeared at the courier's side and bowed to him, smiling. "Of course." She motioned to the courier, who followed her, leaving the table of Serynzheris pondering silently.
"So who was it?" Rhualie asked after they had passed through all the rooms, and left the estate. The servant kept pace with the taller courier, her ears perking up with excitement. "Were you paid to keep quiet or something?"
"I told your master the truth," the courier said it with the tiniest of sighs. Now that they were outside, it was slightly dimmer. The wind sweeping through the city smelt faintly of autumn leaves, bright and dusty. From the steps leading down to Sunswalk, they could see the Hawkstrider, Ilki, peering back up at them. He returned to grooming his feathers with vicious little beakstrokes."I really.. don't know. I'd tell you both if I did."
"...Oh. It's all right then." Rhualie handed the courier a small purse, and trotted back up the stairs.
The courier watched her go, then walked down to her waiting Hawkstrider. He gave her a resentful look. "I'm sorry, I didn't think it'd take so long, all right? I'll get you a Dragonhawk treat to make up for it." With the Hawkstrider mollified, she climbed onto his back and rested in the saddle. Only once they had set off again did she remember the purse. She carefully unlaced the opening, and held out a palm to catch the coins. Several gold and silver coins showered out.
"...Gold? For a courier's tip?" Her eyes widened. She turned in her seat to look back at the estates of Sunswalk, which were fading with distance. "Forget the person who sent them the letter. Who're they?"
[The characters whose entries haven't been filled out are characters who will be introduced later.]
Spoiler:
Serynzheri Family
Artairis Serynzheri [House ruler. Son of Ansrael Serynzheri]
A kindly, usually well-meaning man with a greedy streak, Artairis is devoted to maintaining the House's position in the hierarchy of Silvermoon. He trained as a Spellbreaker and remains excellent in technique. He emphasizes kindness and good treatment for the Serynzheri artists and retainers: a practice which has led to a good reputation amongst the artist's circles in Silvermoon. Not without controversy - some dispute Arrian naming Artairis as his heir, particularly since Arrian gave no reason for it. Has a bit of an alcohol habit (usually drinks when stressed). Appearance-wise, he's quite tall and good-looking even for a Serynzheri.
Ansrael Serynzheri
Deceased, father of Artairis Serynzheri and brother of Arrian, Taldeimos, and Cyielra.
Arrian Serynzheri [Former House leader]
Brother of Taldeimos, Cyielra, and Ansrael Serynzheri, and father of Taiga.
Taldeimos Serynzheri
The youngest sibling of Arrian's generation. Lacking in the interest to inherit, he was allowed to choose his path in life - and he chose to work as an arcanist and researcher. He was turned into a Death Knight several years after the Siege of Silvermoon. He returned to the family, but never regained the respect he had commanded before. He's somewhat more violent than the rest of the family, due to his Death Knight-y nature. Artairis seems to consider him a threat to the others, and treats him with polite distance. Appearance-wise, he has short, sandy-blond hair, and a sturdier build than most elves. He also dresses sensibly. Occasionally wears armor.
Cyielra Haelsyth
Cyielra was Arrian Serynzheri's younger sister, and is now Artairis's aunt. She is considered the magically-adept one of the family. This isn't true - she has very little magical talent, but more than makes up for it in intelligence and charisma. She has more experience than Artairis with living in a noble family, and so advises him on political and business matters. She has a more cynical view to things than the rest of the family. Well-beloved by most. After the Siege of Silvermoon, she was invited to live in the Serynzheri estate in Silvermoon along with her son, Kaei'tos. Appearance-wise, she has long, dark golden hair, an awesomely twisted smile, and seems to have a natural blush.
Aerindel Haelsyth
Deceased. Cyieldra's husband and Kaei'tos' father.
Kaei'tos Haelsyth
Artairis' cousin, and Cyieldra's son. Although he's only about fifty years old, he loves his cousin dearly and wants to follow in his footsteps as a Spellbreaker. He also shows a distinct interest in crafts: something which has flourished since the death of his father. His tutor and Cieldrim both encourage him in it. In fact, he seems to get a lot of attention from everyone.
Cieldrim Serynzheri/Orisamitore
Artairis' cousin on the other side of the family, and all-around family friend, Cieldrim isn't technically a Serynzheri. But after the Siege of Silvermoon, when she lost the rest of her family and almost all of the Orisamitore estate, she was informally adopted by the Serynzheris (can't legally inherit). She's roughly the age of Artairis, and treats him like a brother. Although she's a very tranquil and kind person, she knows firsthand what it's like to suffer. She's made teaching Kaei'tos her personal favor to the Serynzheris. Appearance-wise, she's a bit shorter than the Serynzheris, and keeps her silver hair in a bob. She has a taste for simpler clothes.
Van Gestel
A human Death Knight specialized in Unholy and disease creation, Van Gestel is nevertheless a fairly nice and chivalrous person to those he likes. However, he's also got an impressive cruel streak to those he doesn't, and he's willing to kill people brutally to express his displeasure. He is/was friends with the deceased Death Knight, Deidre.
Servants/Artists
Elruimar Frostwhisper
The foremost amongst the Serynzheri artists, Elruimar is an accomplished sculptor and painter. Due to his ability in sculpting crystal, he's extremely valuable to the family. He's accorded many rights amongst them, and is usually the one to speak on behalf of the other contracted artists. Extremely vehement in personality about art, and all things pertaining to it. Also has the most insufferable way of being right most of the time. Seems to be friends with Artairis. Appearance-wise, he's quite muscular for an elf, red-haired, and usually wears an expression which makes it look like he's staring.
Duellon Sunsbreath
Kaei'tos personal tutor, a retired priest with a great interest in the sciences. He and Cieldrim seem to be friends: they collaborate in a number of projects, and spend a lot of time debating. Especially the philosophical kind of debate. Appearance-wise, he's a bit on the chubby side, and his black hair is trying to turn grey on him. Has a rather grandfatherly air about him.
Saithara Phoenixfeather
Saithara is one who could only be considered the resident pyromaniac. She's a specialist Fire-mage, and takes delight in using fire in decoration and practical applications wherever possible. Despite all of this, her accident rate remains nil. In her spare time she has a great deal of fun with suitors, and sometimes helps Kianna do standard cooking. Appearance-wise, she's tall and thin, with jet-black hair. Literally everything about her looks sleek and professional. She wears a phoenix-patterned choker which seems to work like a voice magnifier.
Kianna Goldstrike
Mage/head chef of the Serynzheris, with a seemingly inexhaustible pool of natural mana. She has a very mellow attitude, and gets along with most people. She also has a variety of widespread interests, and often trades the artists of the House their favorite foods in return for lessons in their specialties. History is a topic which interests her greatly: she could monologue for the better part of three hours about the Serynzheri history. Appearance-wise she's stocky and muscular, with bright-gold hair in a bun.
Vernaris Bloomsong
????
Aesu Windflight/'Courier Girl'
Aesu was formerly a middle-class girl. But with the advent of the Siege of Silvermoon, when both parents and one of her siblings died, she was forced to take up a profession to pay the bills. She and Ilki have been companions for years, and she seems to understand what Ilki 'says'. Appearance-wise, she's a tall and gawky half-grown girl who usually has a courier's bag at her waist.
Ilki
Aesu's beloved pet and companion, Ilki is a Hawkstrider trained to work as a courier's mount. He's extremely intelligent for a Hawkstrider, and appears to communicate with Aesu via whistles and chirps. Loves Dragonhawk treats. He's the average size for a Hawkstrider, and his feathers are iridescent purple. To judge from his large, bright eyes and cheerful demeanor, he's very healthy.
As cold and unfriendly as the last day had been, this one was wonderful by any count.
Colors seemed more intense, as if a lens of grime had been wiped off the world. Whites, golds, and reds blazed alongside one another in the sun to the point where closing one's eyes was a relief. To say nothing of the sounds and smells - the sound of people talking and harps playing, and the smell of autumn leaves and someone baking bread were all carried on the breeze. A handful of Orcs followed a Sin'dorei guide through the Walk of Elders, talking amongst themselves and examining the scenery. A couple of Dragonhawks raced over the city, keeping their wings half-furled for better maneuvering through the towers. One of the riders wrapped his hands around the reins and leaned over the side to get a better view of the Bazaar below.
The Bazaar was full of people, with a constant stream of new arrivals. Artists and mages had set their wares out on conjured tables for the observer's benefit. People collected to look at work after work of silvery ropelike enchantments, petrified wood and crystals carved into fantastic shapes, magically-woven garments, immense paintings of land and city-scapes, pretty little trinkets, and, for the more adventurous, spells wound up into a physical form. A circle had been cleared in the Bazaar's center, obviously for a show of some sort.
Through the crowds, Aesu and Ilki walked along. The Hawkstrider stayed close to his friend, even though she wasn't holding the reins. He kept his head up to inspect everyone they walked by.
Aesu hesitated at a few stalls: first to admire a set of filigreed mithril jewelry which a smiling jeweler held out for her inspection, then to walk alongside a painting of the western shore of Eversong, staring into it to absorb all the detail. Once, she ran her hands over a blue silk shirt with gold threads woven in, and rushed away into the crowd before the stall-owner could notice. One of the artists had on display a case full of spells. Each spell was sealed into a glass compartment and labeled appropriately. She took one filled with golden Light off the case and held it up to one eye before putting it back.
"What do you think that was? I bet you it was a paladin's spell," she said to Ilki as they continued down the line again. "Looked like one of those what-do-you-call-em's. Naaru?" The bird blinked at her, then looked back to the last stall. A couple of elven girls - one black-haired, one blonde - had taken up the space they had just occupied, and were looking over the cube filled with Light.
"Well, whatever it was, I-uhmph-"
The person she had just stumbled into chuckled and put her arms up to Aesu's shoulders to steady her. Aesu looked up very slowly at the newcomer, seeing the gold-threaded Serynzheri House symbol on one of her black gloves before anything else. The family member gave Aesu a slightly toothy grin, eyes twinkling under the fel. Her silver hair had been cut into a tidy bob at chin-length, and she had a kind, wide-eyed face with not a misplaced contour. A sword hung, sheathed, from her belt. A white silk lily was tucked behind one of her pointed ears.
"There. Be careful - you might bump into something larger than you next time." She released Aesu, taking a step back and brushing her hands together. "Kaei'tos, Duellon. Hurry up - get a spot at the center of the Bazaar, or you'll miss our little pyromaniac's show." A little boy looking slightly uncomfortable in formal dress, and carrying a small brass shield at his side appeared at her back, followed by a middle-aged elf with the staff and white robes of a priest. They both inspected Aesu.
"Hey, that's the one who gave us the letter! The one Artairis was asking Minn'da about." The little boy said. The priest and other girl looked from him to Aesu.
"Were you the courier my cousin mentioned earlier?" The Serynzheri girl asked. "The one who delivered a letter yesterday?"
"Yes. What about it, my lady?"
"-Not here. It's too easily overheard, Cieldrim. Wait until the exhibition is over, and ask her then." The priest looked from the Serynzheri girl to Aesu, folding his arms into the sleeves of his robe. Aesu braced herself, waiting for the noble girl to lash out. It never came. Cieldrim simply nodded at him.
"Of course. And-" here, she lowered her voice "-please don't call me that in public. To them, I'm Miss Orisamitore and nothing else." Duellon nodded. Aesu tried to slip away from the small group of Serynzheris, but Cieldrim put a hand on her shoulder. "Courier. Wait a moment. It's important." Resigned, Aesu went over to stand next to Kaei'tos, who smiled back at her encouragingly. When Ilki the Hawkstrider pushed his way through the crowd to get to Aesu, he tipped his head at them and chirped. Kaei'tos extended a hand, which Ilki nibbled very gently, beak clacking.
"Don't worry. Ilki likes to meet new people." Aesu said very quietly to Kaei'tos. "Does he help you carry mail?" Kaei'tos whispered back. Aesu nodded.
"Good day ladies and gentlemen. I hope you're enjoying the event?" The voice was female: her words crisply enunciated, and utterly professional-sounding. A new person had walked into the midst of the crowd, carrying a handful of staves in one hand. A handful of people shouted back at her enthusiastically. She stopped where she was to toy with the phoenix-patterned choker at her throat. A couple of gems standing in for the phoenix's eyes glowed red, and she continued talking. "Lovely. Now, before we begin the display, I'd like to request that all audience members stay calm. The setting is highly controlled and approved by the Silvermoon magi for the following performance. Thank you all for your patronage. Have a nice day."
She handed off the staves to four robed volunteers who took them into the crowd. As one of the glittering Dragonhawks swooped into view, one of the volunteers raised his staff and pointed it at the Dragonhawk and rider. The word he shouted was drowned out by the crowd and fire's hiss. A jet of golden flame issued from the staff, and struck the Dragonhawk square in the chest. Heat made the air shimmer. The Dragonhawk hovered in the air as the growing fire ate its wings away. The person astride it jumped off, to the collective gasp of the crowd.
Kaei'tos and Ilki watched, eyes huge, as the person executed a couple of backflips in the air. Fiery wings grew around him, the tips tinged blue with heat. They slowed his fall enough that by the time he was near the ground, he touched his feet to it without a sound. The phoenix's wings still glowed around his shoulders. Above him, the Dragonhawk was still burning. Waves of molten-red heat rippled over the air of the Bazaar. One of the next mages pointed his staff up to the hawk without a word.
Everything went silver. The disintegrated Dragonhawk's ashes came down on the crowds massed below, bright with fresh magic. They flecked clothes, hair, and ground like confetti. Aesu was too busy staring up at where the Dragonhawk had been to brush herself off. Cieldrim, and Duellon were already free of sparkles. Ilki, who had been preening his feathers clean until then, ceased and began to run his beak through Kaei'tos silver-spangled hair instead. Kaei'tos flinched and looked over at Cieldrim rather guiltily.
"It's all right. It's rare for birds to preen others. It means they like you." Cieldrim told him. She covered her mouth with a black-gloved hand, trying to fight back her smirk. Duellon was also smiling. Somewhere in back of them, a tall, lanky elven woman with a loud voice was arguing with a blonde man who carried a small living-painting of Quel'thalas under the crook of one arm.
"Miss.." Aesu paused a moment, trying to recall the name. She promptly gave up. "My lady? Do you know if that was a real Dragonhawk they burned?"
Cieldrim shook her head. "Not at all. That was a magical construct. Our firemage Saithara was working on it for a few weeks to prepare for the exhibition."
"Oh. I'm glad." Aesu looked back to Ilki and Kaei'tos and smiled. "Wait - your firemage? The Serynzheri family were the ones who brought her to perform here?"
Duellon, who had been waiting for the crowd to clear out, walked over to the center of the Bazaar and looked down at the firemage, Saithara. She was sitting there, chatting with another artisan: a muscled, red-headed elf with the sort of fixated gaze which made it seem like he was constantly staring. He sat cross-legged to examine a potted pine tree. This one was entirely clear - each angle had small rainbows refracting endlessly inside it. The entire tree, needles and all, sparkled like ice underneath full sunlight.
"-And I don't see why you should tell me what to do with my specialty. I don't interfere with your sculpture or paintings. Seriously, Elruimar? If it was me, I'd've lit off five of those phoenixes. It's a little dull otherwise."
"You two. We can bring it to Cyielra or Artairis later. We've got some business back at the estate to attend to now. Could you close up your booths and come with me?" Cieldrim looked from one artisan to the other. What she thought of their argument, it was impossible to tell. Duellon rolled his eyes. Kaei'tos, meanwhile, had put down his shield and was working on climbing up Ilki's iridescently purple back. The Hawkstrider - perhaps resigned to this fate - held still for him to do so.
"What sort of business?" Saithara asked, her ears perking. Cieldrim shook her head.
"I'm sorry, but that's going to have to stay between Artairis and Cyielra for now. What's important now is that I speak to them as soon as possible. "
[All roleplayed ingame. Original dialogue preserved. Note that since it's a roleplay between Taiga and Eris, I'm not really expecting anyone to read all of it.]
Spoiler:
Part I: Hospitality
The sun was settling in to the west by the time the two Death Knights reached the front of the Serynzheri Estate. By that point in time, it seemed most of the residents of Sunswalk had either returned home, or were out walking. Flecks of light literally poured in from the cracks in the cloud cover, turning every surface they hit into a gold-spangled jumble of colors. The clouds banking on the horizon were an ethereal purple which made the outlines blend into one another.
The front of the Serynzheri estate was simple: a smooth white marble polished to a faint sheen by either time or work. It rose around the estate proper, high enough to be imposing, and block out unwanted distractions. The Serynzheri crest was carved on the archway above the doors. So, too, with the crystal pine of the house's name. Taiga dismounted from her Hawkstrider before the front gates of the estate and looked up to the walls, smiling slightly.
"Lovely, is it not? The stone is the only thing they left untouched." She walked along the side until she reached a small, stylized crystal baton set into the door, pulling it free and using it to ring the chime in the center. She replaced it there and waited with arms folded in her robe. "I remember it relatively well. Of course, having to be kept hidden wasn't exactly helpful." Eris examined the gates as she dismounted and moved for Taiga's side.
"Pleasing to the eye, and no doubt functional." she looked over to the other Death Knight. "Naturally. I'd think someone with a vague map more useful than one without." she smiled for a brief moment, before her hands slipped into the sleeves of her robe, mirroring Taiga's gesture. The gates creaked open slowly, revealing gardens beyond. It was like stepping into a greenhouse: the walls blocked out sound and kept in a certain amount of humidity. The Serynzheri servant waiting on the cobbles bowed to them. His livery was the red and gold of the Blood Elves, with the insignia of the House embroidered onto one shoulder in gold thread. The doors remained open as he strode over.
"Misses Eris, Taiga. Welcome to the Serynzheri estate. An escort will be here for you shortly." Indeed, shortly thereafter, another one of the liveried servants arrived for them. This one bore the crest on the front of his tunic. "Please follow me," he told them. "The family's expecting you in the smaller reception hall."
Taiga smirked back at Eris once she got the chance. As they strolled through the front gardens - full of riotous blooms, pagodas, and small fountains - her attention went to one thing in the center: a crystalline reflecting pool, perfectly still. The land sloped up gently towards their destination.
"I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask for your weapons before entering," One of the guards flanking the doorway to the building told them, tone far from uncertain. "Our circumstances and setting require it."
"A Death Knight's runeblades..." Eris shook her head slowly, more out of disbelief than refusal. She unclipped the sheaths of her swords them from her belt, holding them both up in one hand. "...Can be maddening for mortal minds to hold." she let the weapons go, and they simply stood there, floating in mid-air. Taiga offered her runeblades without ceremony.
"We've prepared accordingly for that. Taldeimos Serynzheri is of the Ebon Blade." The guard moved back, allowing someone else through. The new guard took the blades and bowed to Eris and Taiga, then opened the doors to admit them. Inside was brighter than outside, all gold and white and red. The ceiling above was painted with a brilliant-blue sky which shifted slowly as they watched it "That wasn't here before," she remarked very quietly to Eris. "It must be new." The guard led them through a series of elegantly arched corridors and rooms, into a circular room with stairs on either side, and a balcony set above. Dragonhawks and phoenixes filled the mural of autumn sky above their heads.
"Good evening, cousins. Welcome to the Serynzheri estate. I am Artairis Serynzheri." Someone spoke to them from not far away. The people of the family had obviously been waiting for them in that room. One, by far the tallest, wearing the crest on his blood-colored robes gave them a polite bow, his golden braid flicking over his shoulder. His face bore an uncanny resemblance to Taiga's: something about their eyes, cheekbones, and the set of their mouths.
The one standing next to him - a woman with an intense gaze, and golden hair flowing down to mingle with the color of her robe - looked up to the two Death Knights and curtseyed. The younger boy behind the two watched them both carefully, then mimicked the House leader's bow. The last - silver-haired and almost impish - inclined her head, eyes not leaving theirs. She had an almost challenging expression.
"Good to find you well, Artairis," Taiga replied after giving her cousin a brief once-over, curtseying before the family alongside Eris. "And good evening," Eris added, voice soft.
"I wish the same of both to you. And those are, in order, Cyielra Haelsyth-" the intense blonde woman nodded, "-Kaei'tos Haelsyth-" the boy between them looked up at Eris and Taiga, wide-eyed "-and Cieldrim Orisamitore. I.. apologize for the unfortunate absence of my uncle. He prefers the solitude of a smaller estate." He paused for a moment, then continued, tone precise and polite. "Our cooks have, of course, prepared an appropriate repast for us. As my guests, you have the option of a brief tour of the house, or going directly to the evening meal." He raised an eyebrow at Taiga. "So. I hear you've both traveled for quite some time to get here."
"A pleasure." Eris inclined her head briefly, then straightened. Her voice was bordering on reverent. "A brief tour would be quite enjoyable," she added.
"It's been a long time."
The corridors through which they walked grew larger. Unlike most Thalassian households and palaces, those had few enough decorations to be elegant rather than overdone. A few red velvet-cushioned chairs in an alcove here, a statue of a Serynzheri ancestor there. The light was ambient: coming in through the windows and the painted sky overhead in silvery motes to make it seem like they were standing in full daylight. Several of the largest windows were draped with curtains which had no color of their own. They diffused the light, showing a blur of green, white and red instead of the gardens behind it.
"The estate has been in our family for at least a thousand years," Artairis told them as they walked. "Since the House is reliant on the artisans it produces and contracts to others, it's only natural that we've taken an interest in the arts themselves." The room they entered eventually was filled with works of glass, both large and small. Even the furniture was made of a fine, filigreed glass so delicate that it could have been braided out of spider's web. The silver-and-white spirals of the higher levels were visible from the window. "Personally, I'm fond of combat as an art form. But we have our differences. What interests you?"
"Very fine." Eris said, referring to the blown-glass sculpture she was examining. She turned away from the shelf and looked back to Artairis, a smile creeping over her face. "Combat as an art form sounds quite like my choice, though I must admit that the process often involves the odd side-effects. Such as scars and the like - And that is precisely the reason for which I would be more interested by painting than fighting. The house makes wonderful enchanted paintings, correct?"
"Yes. They're one of the favorites of Silvermoon. Elruimar Frostwhisper is our resident master of painting." Artairis spoke over his shoulder. The other family members had dispersed through the room: Cyielra by one of the tables in the center, busy re-shaping a delicate blown-glass swan with magic. Cieldrim walked along the sides, admiring the way the way the glass was set neatly into the stone floor like mosaics.
"I'm curious. Did you two travel recently from Northrend?" Cieldrim asked, looking up at the two Death Knights attentively.
"I'd have to say I've not," Eris said. She had been watching the re-shaping of the swan, before turning to smile at Cieldrim. She kept on examining each piece of glass after that, walking alongside the tables with Taiga.
Artairis waited until they'd finished examining the glass room before suggesting another. He led them next into larger halls: ones with immense tapestries, alcoves with Thalassian statuary, and once, a corridor with a clear panel of glass laid against wall and ceiling. Water rushed behind the glass like an enclosed waterfall. A perfect translucent blue, entirely fishless. Eris stopped to watch its flow.
"Beautiful,"
The place where they ended up was one of the larger halls arrayed with paintings. "This one's popular with the visitors," Artairis explained to his charges. "They're painted over first with pigments, then with magic. Elruimar is currently working on a series of fantasy landscapes: ones you probably wouldn't see in Azeroth or Outland."
"Fantasy serves to stimulate imagination. And often, imagination is what defines a person's creative abilities." Eris said as she walked along the hall to admire them.
"You and he would enjoy talking, I think. He likes getting commissions from people, and then debating the nuances of the piece for hours." Artairis grinned. Cieldrim, who had been examining a painting of the Hinterlands and a bucolic elven lodge therein, looked over to Artairis, raising one silver eyebrow. Apparently his happiness was contagious - she began to smile as well.
"I think his creative ability mostly comes from what he's seen in his travels, to be honest." Cieldrim turned around and gazed back down the hall, at the blue flickering lights the water cast on everything. "If you're interested, I recall we have a guest-room with a water theme. Silent, of course."
Eris nodded once. "I'd very much enjoy meeting him some day.I see little fault in him painting what he has seen. As for a water theme, I would appreciate it. I find the ebb and flow of water a very beautiful, calming sight." she glanced back towards Taiga. "But only if you wish for it as well, naturally."
"Of course I would." Taiga walked for a painting: a vast panorama of Dragonblight, with Titan ruins leaning jaggedly across it. Wymrest glowed a vibrant bronze in the distance, as did the Red Dragonshrine. The Aurora Borealis in the starry sky shifted and moved, bathing the snow in the light of the cosmos. The colors of it were so vibrant, and the painting so detailed that although it was a painting, it could just as easily have been a window.
"And neither do I," Cieldrim said, sounding amused. "There's so much to the world. That continent in particular is under-appreciated."
"I prefer the Sholazar series, but ice and snow do have a certain beauty."
Cyielra, meanwhile, was speaking to one of the servants farther down the hall. "-No use? I truly doubt that. We could always use a reliable courier. If she's proven to be one, then it doesn't matter-"
"Agreed. I wonder whether or not an Icecrown painting exists, of a certain place, somewhere beneath the Citadel there. One filled with crystals, ice and the like - A vault of refracting and reflecting light." Eris said to Cieldrim. She watched the courier out of the corners of her eyes. One ear moved back to catch the sound of their speech reflected down the halls. "..Courier?" She mouthed to herself very quietly.
"Interesting. Isn't that a rather.. important place?" Cieldrim asked. Eris nodded slightly in confirmation, and Cieldrim looked away to Artairis next.
"I'll have to ask him to visit Northrend again for inspiration. Now, you mentioned combat practice as an art form. We have a private practice field for bodyguards and family members. Should you wish to use it, you're free to do so." Artairis started walking again, headed for the far side of the hall. Cyielra finished giving the servant orders, and returned to walk along with the small group, calm and polite-looking as ever.
"I doubt we will, but it will be useful nonetheless. Thank you." Eris said.
They left the building some time later, headed for the gardens. This time they passed through several of the white-and-gold pagodas over which climbing vines draped themselves and bloomed crimson. From the center of the garden, they could see to the other outbuildings, all of which were spread across the estate in some sort of pattern. Another servant rushed over to Cyielra as they near the end of the path.
"Lady Haelsyth, we've just received another guest. This one.. well, it's very last-minute, but she said it was something very important." Taiga, Eris, and Artairis all looked back to Cyielra, listening in. "Who is this?" Artairis asked impatiently. He looked back to Taiga and Eris. "If you don't mind? I'd like to get this straightened out. May we?"
"Of course. If it's important, then the tour can wait." Eris said.
"Thank you." With a gesture, he directed the servant to lead them. The small group filed in behind the person, walking to another one of the white marble buildings on the outskirts of the garden. This one bore several spires atop it, one of them seemingly made of glass. Light glanced off the bright colors and metal, making it twinkle in the sun. "Our artist's house," Artairis said with a faint sigh. "What possessed you to let an unknown guest in, then show them to here, of all places?"
Cieldrim, who had lagging in back, picked up the pace to speak to them. "You should ask them first. I don't think they'd want to risk being fired over if if they didn't have to be." She glanced up to Taiga and Eris. "Is this other guest one of yours?" She asked. Eris watched one of the spires, before she looked back to Cieldrim and shook her head.
"Not that we know of, no."
The inside of the servant's and artisan's quarters was larger than expected, and remarkably bright: magelights illuminated some places, while the golden light of the evening outside came in through the windows. The rooms were decorated almost like a standard Thalassian estate: gold and red everywhere.
And in many of them, one could see people working away. The group walked past Elruimar, who sat on an artist's stool, hard at work with a crystal tree: literally sculpting the crystal with his hands like clay. He smiled over at them as they walked past. A room on the second floor was their destination, wherein an elven woman was sitting on a slightly overplush-looking sofa, waiting for them. She nodded politely.
"Greetings. I'm sorry to give you such late warning, but it couldn't be helped."
"-Shevai?" Cieldrim asked incredulously. "Really?" Artairis looked amazed as well. Eris quirked an eyebrow at the woman, and mouthed the name again, just loudly enough for Taiga to hear. Shevai looked up at the two Death Knights, and back to Artairis.
"I guess they wouldn't know me," she replied, smiling. "Let me introduce myself: I'm Shevai Crimsonstar. I'm kind of.. let's say, a family friend? Nothing more." Shevai folded her legs against the side of the sofa. "I'm a mage. I left the estate in.. well.. urgent circumstances, so I was hoping I could repay my presence here with some saleable art." Artairis frowned down at her, very faintly.
"What sort of urgent circumstances?' Cieldrim asked.
"I had to travel to Silvermoon for a local emergency." She kept looking up at them, an innocent expression on her face. "I'll have to consider it," Artairis said calmly.
"A pleasure to meet you. "An emergency would beget such a quick.. departure, I suppose." Eris said.
Artairis put his hands in his pockets, suddenly very casual. "Now, my question is, what manner of idiot would take that story at face value. Not one of us did, Shevai."
His tone grew more pleasant. His eyes focused intently on Shevai. Her outline wavered and grew dark; something twining around inside it like black snakes inside a jar. Something in the air crackled, giving it the faintest scent of ozone. The room returned to its previous bright state once the spell had been consumed.
"Can't they even be bothered to try anymore?" Artairis asked his company rhetorically. "We've been getting curses for years, and none so obvious as that one."
"I'm quite fond of attributing often undeserved intelligence and complexity to everything. Maybe it was some sort of distraction. Maybe it had some greater purpose - and was intentionally so dumb." Eris shrugged. "Then again, that's just my way of rationalizing things."
"I'll bear that in mind, cousin. So. Cyielra, you're the mage here. Why didn't you sense it?"
His aunt, who was still looking at the sofa, blinked a few times and looked up. "It wasn't necessary. This one was properly controlled." Cieldrim's gaze flitted from one to the other, slightly worried.
"You two. I think our guests are probably quite hungry by now. Can't we continue to the larger halls to eat?" She said.
"..You're right, Cieldrim. Let's go."
From there, they went down several halls and ascended a long staircase to a higher building: this one bearing the spiraling walkways and misty enchantments they had seen floating over the gardens and estate earlier. Several of the pagodas were even in midair. "You teleport to them," Artairis explained. "It used to be by Dragonhawk, but I prefer this new way." They entered the hall. It seemed normal enough for a few feet, although decorated lavishly.
But beyond that, the walls were inset with a couple of crystal pillars, with carved vines arcing up them. The doors of the gate were translucent: etched in some places with designs from some mysterious Serynzeri past, and pierced through to show the way the light shifted through the crystal. A great pine was carved over all the rest, its branches growing into the ceiling. Artairis, almost oblivious to the majesty of the piece, put one hand gently to the door to swing it open. He motioned them in.
"The Bright Forest," he said, rather unnecessarily. Indeed, it was almost like Crystalsong: each tree glowed with an inner light, and was rooted directly into the snowy-looking ground. The ceiling had the colors of a Northrend midnight: a perfect, still blue flecked with distant stars, with the Aurora shining in front of them like a veil. Even the walls had been painted with snowy mountains and plains.
"The Aurora... Incandescent stardust, caught from the depths of the Great Dark Beyond." Eris murmured, after a great deal of silence on the viewers' part. "Most impressive." she exhaled, gaze lingering on a painting.
"It's got no equivalent in Crystalsong. Nor anywhere, really. The ancestors of the Serynzheris loved Silverpine, from whence comes part of the name." Artairis looked back at them, explaining the entire while. Cyielra had already ventured over to one of the corners, to where a small glade of trees had 'grown' around a carved crystal table.
"Perhaps we should eat here for the time being," she remarked. "I think our guests would enjoy it more." She beckoned them over. "Kianna will be finished by now."
"Certainly. That would be very pleasant." Eris said in Cyielra's direction. She couldn't help but glance off to the walls, and the crystalline trees, before looking back to the others. Taiga moved for the table, settling down into one of the available seats. Eris followed, glancing around to examine the small glade. A flicker of magic on the table, and it was set neatly with several plates and sets of silverware per person. A plate with an assortment of croissants rested in the center; presumably for the having.
"Since it's a family gathering, Cyielra felt it should be a little less formal. After all, if you came here to stay temporarily, then comfort's rather important." Artairis sat down at the 'head' chair. A chime pealed through the room and he looked up. "Oh no... not another person." He followed this with "you may enter," spoken more loudly. The courier girl - Aesu - walked into the room rather uncomfortable-seeming in her livery. She bowed to them.
"I apologize for interfering at such a bad time, but you've received a letter from Master Taldeimos. Would you prefer it now, or after your meal?" She glanced Eris's and Taiga's way, looking rather nervous.
"I'll hear it later. If he does us the discourtesy of interrupting us during a meal, then having to wait a short time is hardly improper." At his gesture, Cieldrim cleared her throat politely and began a short, rather poetic prayer of thanks, spoken in very formal Thalassian. All of the others bowed their heads as well. By the time it was finished and they had raised their heads again, other dishes had appeared: a salad platter of marinated Frostcap mushrooms, a small bowl of blush-pink peaches, and a winter leek soup. Each goblet contained a faintly-glittering colorless juice.
"I told Kianna that Northrend-style food would be more appropriate," Artairis said very simply. "Please, cousins. Enjoy."
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Part II: Hostility
It had been a while since their tour of the spires and marble walkways of the higher floors. Long enough for the sun to have been down for several hours, and the rest of the people of the estate to have gone to bed. Taiga spent a moment or two eying the room as she entered. The bed was a typical Thalassian one; circular, but the sheets, cushions, and translucent curtain all in an aquatic blue. And the rest of the room, to judge from the murals on the walls and the aquatic insets, was completely submerged.
"Mm... Beautiful." Eris lay on the bed, eyes half-closed and dreamy-looking. "I think we're going to enjoy sleeping there, don't you?" she glanced sidelong to Taiga. Taiga blinked back rather slowly, as if she was a pleased cat. Eventually, though, Eris looked away to scrutinize the room with a certain degree of suspicion.
"Is something wrong with the room?" Taiga inquired. She strolled around it, admiring the furnishings. Hung in the corner was a large oval mirror, rippled with wave patterns. She looked at it a moment; probably admiring herself. "I don't think my cousin would take the time to rig it. Oh - do you think we should ask to eat again in the Bright Forest tomorrow?" She fell silent very quickly. At the words 'bright forest', her reflection in the mirror had out to be replaced by a glimpse of the Bright Forest from above. She stared at the sight, a grin spreading over her face. "An activated scrying mirror? This wasn't here last time I was here.."
"I... would not know. It's in my nature to be suspicious, my most cherished one." Eris said, sounding quite happy. She wandered over and blinked as the mirror shifted. She raised her hand to set it lightly on Taiga's shoulder. "That is strange. Do you think the others work the same?... Do you think we could be watched?... Moreover, is it merely an image, or could we use it to watch, in turn?" Towards the end, she sounded almost mischievous. Taiga 's ears perked up, and a truly wicked grin spread over her face
"Lunar Walkway," Taiga announced with an imperious gesture. The image of the Lunar Walkway outside flickered into view - calm and bleached-silver by the moonlight, which shone through the glass. "I'm not sure if I want to use it to watch them," she said to Eris under her breath. "It could, just as easily, be a test."
Eris nodded slowly. "Mm." she kept watching the mirror as she spoke quietly. "Or it could be a tool for us to use in some greater test. Try watching our own room." her tone then raised to its normal level - "I think the Forest will be fine as our next dining locus."
"Water Suite," Taiga said to the mirror after clearing her throat. Briefly, the view of the walkway showed something blurry before turning into the regular mirror's-face again. "...Well, that didn't work. I wonder how far its reach is." She was still looking at herself in the mirror. She brushed a strand of hair back and spoke again. "Eastern Estate Border." The view changed to be just above the border, not far at all from a very large balcony. There was the sound of a very quiet voice, talking just inside.
Eris blinked. She tipped her head to the side. "Sounds like someone's... talking. That suite is probably protected as well. I wonder if there's any way to hear it better." she said quietly, moving a little closer to the mirror, ears perking up to try picking up fragments of conversation.
"-not-" The conversation became just the slightest bit louder. The person inside must have been getting closer to the door to the balcony. Taiga's ears perked up as well. "-out of the question." The voice was Artairis's.
Talking to himself.
Eris blinked a couple of times. "Strange. Very much so." she said quietly, looking to Taiga. "Perhaps there is another there speaking very lowly?... Or maybe he's using some long-distance communication spell."
Taiga looked from Eris back to the mirror. In the light from the lamps inside, Artairis's outline could be distinguished. It looks like he was leaning up against the wall very casually: hair unbraided, and clad in sleeping robes. "No. There's no way I'd believe something so easily," he said, voice growing slightly heated. "....-can't make you swear it. How do I -know-?"
"Mm... A nightly argument right before bed. Interesting... Something about belief. Uncertainty. I wonder who he is speaking to.." Eris's voice was quiet, insidious.
"-Have any idea of the devastation it could cause? And you want me to just go ahead and-" "-danger?" There was a long silence. Artairis could be seen nodding. "Quieter? All right." He lowered his voice. Whatever was being said then couldn't be distinguished.
"Danger, hmm?.." Eris asked before she crouched down in front of the mirror, bringing her ear just a little closer. She looked over to Taiga. "Please, excuse the posture. Curiosity is getting... the better of me."
There was further silence. Until he started speaking again, very quietly. "No. I refuse to let you command me so easily. And what about the House? Elruimar would refuse to continue working for us." There was another long pause, and the sigh of wind rushing through the towers. "-no reason otherwise. It'd be unnecessarily cruel."
And the inside of the room went dark.
"Well. Whatever it was, that was interesting."
Eris nodded. She looked over to Taiga. "Yes, it was. It seems the good Artairis is being manipulated. Or someone is attempting to manipulate him in a very unfavorable manner both to him, and to the House." She stood back up to straighten the creases in her robe. "Moreover, this could bring about danger. I would not suggest a confrontation, though..."
"I suppose the best thing would be to see how it plays out. If it's unfavorable to them, we have all evidence on our side that we did nothing. And if not, then there's always another day." She reached up, running a hand through the blue curtain. The silk of it rippled through her hand like water. "Don't worry. The estate has been protected from hostile spells, most scrying, and all teleportation for years. Nobody can hear us. ....And nobody else can hear him, either."
Do you ever feel as if you've been cursed? No matter where you go or what you do in life, you know it's lurking above you. All it's waiting for is for you to notice it. ~ Teremun Surus'ilamar
Spoiler:
"-No, I say that it's only logical that it would happen. Besides, you can't really quantify the effects of nature and nurture. There's such a variance in roles from person to person."
"-You can draw a conclusion from whatever evidence you get. It would be the practical way to go about it."
"Practical? You're the theoretician, and you're talking about practical? Do you even know what the word means? I'm the one with the degree here, Laranor."
As the mechanical door swung open gears clicking, the three elves descended down into the lab kept on Murder Row. Two of them - a brown-haired, overeager-looking woman, and a bony, tired-looking man with hands mottled with unnatural colors argued loudly and endlessly. The one in front of them sighed and sped up to get away from the sound. He left them bickering on the threshold to the main room. And to be frank, it looked like they were having an excellent time of it. The woman even had a twisted little smirk.
He walked along the length of the room, glancing up once as one of the others turned the lights on. Thus illuminated, all of the partitions on each side of the room went starkly visible. He walked to the last one on the left, stopping once to pick up a booklet on the table next to it. The metal examination tables inside were filled with stacked parchments, the content of which he knew by heart by now.
The clear tank on the table opposite him was empty. He stared at it for a moment. "Thani, Laranor, did either of you check on Shadowbeasty earlier?" He called to the other two in the room. They fell silent. Thani walked over, followed by Laranor. "Did either of you let him out?"
"No, wh-" Thani went just as quiet. Laranor was twisting his hands nervously in his robe, looking through the glass.
The shadow-monster he had summoned and contained in the terrarium was gone. Even with all the wards placed on it; the blocks to keep it from escaping the researchers' grasp. Gone.
The opposite side of the glass had been melted away. But not by Shadow. This was something completely different.
[Don't be fooled by the beginning. This is not happy. New edit: adding Van Gestel and other Death Knights in the last storyline to the character list.]
Spoiler:
Sorrow
Morning.
Taiga shifted around in the bed. She was covered over by only a few silk covers - which, incidentally, were the only thing she was wearing. One eye opened, followed by the other. "I'm glad there are no windows in here," she remarked; seemingly, she hadn't been sleeping heavily.
"I agree completely. I think I could live like this for a long, long time, perhaps eternity itself." Eris smiled up at the ceiling, her runic eyes bright in the room. She turned her head to look over at her robes, pooled across the bed. "Hmm... Shall I put them on, or do you wish to enjoy the view further?..."
Taiga was about to say something, but never got the chance. Someone knocked at the door very rapidly, and loudly enough for it to echo through the room.
"Misses Eris, Taiga! Your presence is requested immediately. Please, don't delay." Taiga sat up in the bed, eyes wide and ears flicked up to catch the sound.
"..I bet this has something to do with last night," she said very quietly to Eris. She slid off the bed and started sorting through the available clothes left for them in the wardrobe. Eris pouted once Taiga had looked away. She followed suit, walking over to the stand and looking for suitable clothes on it. She located a blue set of robes with feathery trim, and put it on quickly. "And yes, I would be inclined to agree." she added afterward.
Taiga, clad appropriately in an elegantly-cut white robe, moved for the door and walked out. The courier girl - Aesu - was standing there, waiting for them. Her face was pale; her skin and hair looking just the faintest bit damp. She bowed to them.
"I'm sorry. I was the closest availabe one. Lady Cyielra told me to come get you both. Please follow me."
"It's fine." Eris said, nodding once. "Lead on." She and Taiga exchanged meaningful glances as they walked down the corridors after Aesu. The courier girl was having difficulty with remembering the corridors. Each time she got confused or took a wrong turn, she took out a small bird-shaped trinket and clicked it. Eventually she led them out into the gardens, where Cieldrim and Cyielra were waiting for them on the marble paths. Cyielra's robes were rumpled, and Cieldrim had red-rimmed eyes.
"T-there you are," Cieldrim said to them. "Sorry to wake you two, but this is m-more important. Artairis is-" she broke off, as if her throat was constricting too much to let her say any more.
"Dead."
Eris 's eyes went wide. She blinked a couple of times, raising a hand to rub at her eyes. "...How did he?..." she asked quietly. By the time she had finished rubbing her eyes, they were wide as little saucers from the shock. Cyielra gave them thoughtful look, eyes slightly narrowed.
"One of the mages taking the scenic route to another hall found him, lying underneath the balcony which adjoined his quarters. After we were called, we had several of our mages secure the area. We should be able to get investigators here soon. As of right now, it looks like a suicide." Cyielra still hadn't looked away from them. Or blinked. "I also intend to have an armed guard check on the stored runeblades," she added. Cieldrim hid her face in one hand.
"How are we ever going to explain this to Kaei'tos? He was crazy about Artairis." Cieldrim said, voice muffled by tears and the sleeve against her face. Every time her tears threatened to appear, she covered it again to hide.
Eris blinked. "Suicide... Why? He was... happy." She glanced off in the direction of the Bright Forest, then to Cieldrim. "Please, forgive my impertinence, but you can wield the Light, correct?... If so, then, you could attempt to bring him back. That way, you spare Kaei'tos the pain. But if it truly was a suicide, I do not think the Light can bring back unwilling souls..."
"I'd.. forgotten that.." Cieldrim took a handkerchief out of her pocket and turned away from them to blow her nose. By the time she looked back, her nose was bright pink. "I'm not a great paladin. Nor even a good one. But I'll try - the longer we wait, the slimmer the chance becomes." She inclined her head to Eris. "Thank you..." A moment later, and Cyielra nodded, giving Cielrim's shoulder a pat.
"Don't worry. We could bring all the paladins of Silvermoon here if we needed them. Just do your best now, and we'll see the power of the Light."
Cyielra beckoned to Aesu, who had been waiting all the while on the path, staring at the flowers near her feet. "I will notify my brother after we've tried this at least once." she told Aesu. "Taldeimos and Artairis were always at odds. I don't.. want to have to deal with this now." She walked out along the path again, beckoning the others. "Cousins, you're both Death Knights, and it would be reasonable to assume you've seen blood and carnage in your time. But do you want to see this?"
"Yes. Neither of us are squeamish, and there may be clues as to what happened. If we can help in any way.." Eris and Taiga followed after the noblewoman, their heads bowed.
Cyielra led them through the winding garden paths, and in back of the halls whenever possible. It was another sunny day, but the cold shadows the buildings cast made Taiga shiver. One of the enchanted secateurs and trimmers they had seen while traversing the grounds yesterday were still there. The only sounds which kept them from an utter, stunned silence were their footsteps, and Cieldrim's handkerchief-muffled sniffs.
They stopped near a large balcony: from the third floor, it would be at least a forty foot drop.
And there was someone lying across the walkway, face-down. The stones around the body were spattered with dried blood. The head had been tilted back sickeningly from an impact to it: somehow, the front of the skull had been bashed in, and the neck vertebrae had been twisted. He was still wearing plain grey sleeping robes. His braid was blood-flecked and fuzzy from the morning breeze. Every time there was a breath of wind, it fluttered slightly.
Eris examined the body from a slight distance away. She took a couple of steps towards it and crouched, eying it over. She looked up to the balcony, then back to the body, trying to figure out something. "Do you think he'd gather enough speed for such grievous injury? Apologies if my questions are disturbing. But he seems to have his thorax caved in as well as his skull. It would mean he either dove, fell or was pushed from behind. To my knowledge, spreading surface contact with the air as you fall tends to slow you down."
"The balcony's high. It could have happened. He wasn't one to do things halfway.." Cieldrim sat down next to Artairis, not even caring about the blood or the fact he was stone-cold. She just sat there, tears welling in her eyes.
"H..how could someone value inheritance more than family? How c-could he do this to us?" She sat there for a while, legs folded up underneath her. Eventually she cleared her throat and put one hand on Artairis' grey-robed shoulder, closing her eyes to concentrate. They flickered now and then. Everything was still, cold. Cyielra was silent, listening and watching.
Time passed.
Cieldrim was still sitting there half an hour later. When she shoved herself back on the stones and looked up, her cheeks were streaked. "I c-cant. There's no soul waiting for the body."
"So..." Eris breathed out, She rubbed her forehead with her palm, frowning. "It really was suicide... Would he have any reasons to do so? He... seemed fine when last we saw him. Something doesn't add up."
"I know. Someone would have noticed -something- strange." Cyielra looked gravely back at them. Something seemed to catch in her throat, but then it was gone. Her voice was kept steady through strain. Cieldrim shoved herself upright, looking up at the balcony with bleary eyes. "We're going to have to hold an investigation. Nobody present on the estate before today will be able to leave until it's over.
"As of right now, we're all suspects. Especially you two."
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Awakening
Nothing ever seemed to change in the Catacombs. No matter the time of day, the week, or even the year, the place was already ancient. Eternal. The people who lived in it were dispensable. One week, there was one crowd. Another, it had changed. Battle after battle for power. The skeleton sentinels and gargoyles which kept the place were closer to being denizens than the people were. But there were always the few who kept coming back. No matter how often they left, they always returned.
Because there was nowhere else for them to go.
In the lower reaches of the Catacombs was a vast cavern, supported at both ends by pillars. But the ceiling was a high craggy stone which had been buckling over countless years: the edges crumbling away and falling every so often. A cold blue light from the next room over lit it: rippling across the walls like water.
There was one shadow which knelt alone on the dirt floor to dig.
"I thought he was gone. Why is he still here?" The whisper of a female's voice made the shadow look back to the side of the room. Two new people had arrived. One of them was a white-haired elven female loaded with so much bulky armor that she looked overweight. Following behind her was a tall wraith of a ghoul whose weapons glowed in the dark. The blood-red light made the shadow shield his eyes. It was too intense for someone who had been down searching the Catacombs for days.
"What do you want here? There's nothing for you here. Go away!"
"I.. remember you.." The Death Knight - Sanya - said, taking a few cautious steps towards the man. Damp foul-smelling earth had been heaped up all over the room from his digging. He was after something. "You're still looking for someone, aren't you?"
Silence, and the stone seemed to press in on them. The other person took his hooded coat off and dropped it at his side without ceremony. It had been used and loved, but now, it was stained and the fibers of it were loaded with dirt. As he looked down to Sanya, she saw his face. It had been torn away at during some point in time, leaving a cheek and part of his jaw exposed to the air. It had been ripped away like that and never had the chance to heal. He was dead too.
"Deidre. After our leader betrayed us, she took Deidre's corpse and hid it. She told me that if I wanted to have the chance to resurrect her, I'd have to follow her orders." His voice went gruff, but that wasn't what Sanya noticed. She walked over to his side, eyes downcast to take in the sight of all the earth he had moved. Now she knew what had happened in the upper levels. Braindrinker left them to explore the next room over: the place the light was coming from. She didn't watch him leave.
"Van Gestel.."
"What?"
"...Deidre isn't here. She never was."
A stunned silence. Van Gestel turned away from Sanya and walked back over to the place he had been excavating. "I don't believe it. I didn't see her corpse destroyed. All I have to do is find it.. and that b***h will pay. We don't die easily as you seem to think-"
Sanya's eyes were blank. She blinked once.
"-And Deidre and I were friends. Without her, I wouldn't have had anything to do with that damned group. I promised - we promised - in Acherus that we wouldn't.. forget..."
Forget...
Sanya walked after Van Gestel, avoiding the dirt clumps everywhere. There would be more of them upstairs, she knew. Failed sites where Deidre should have been, but wasn't. The site of the Duskwood battle would have been searched. Everything within the realm of possibility had already been explored.
She reached him and stood by him as he kept digging away, not even paying attention to her anymore.
"Her body was burnt. I found the ashes in one of the mountains here." She forced something into his hand. It was a ring. He stared at it wordlessly.
